Glenda Bas was a wife, a mother of five, a career woman, and a community servant. I met her in one of our early sessions of Christian Life Program for the Singles for Christ ministry in Hong Kong. Together with her husband Roy, she stood as a quiet testament to what a Christian marriage could…
Land of the Midnight Sun
A serendipitous search on minimalism and Nordic life led me to a new podcast on life in Norway had just dropped. I was busy declogging our bathroom sink when the episode lingered on something simple but strangely magnetic: the midnight sun. The idea that in summer, the sun refuses to fully leave, stretching light across…
Why Many Filipinos (and Everyone else) are Obsessed with Titles?
If you’ve ever attended a Filipino gathering, you’ve probably encountered someone who insists on being addressed by their full professional title — even when the situation absolutely does not require it. You might be casually asking where the bathroom is, and the person will say, “Doon sa kanan. By the way, I am Engr. Junjun.”…
Why I Stopped Following the News
There was a time when being updated with the latest news was almost a civic duty in many Filipino households. Growing up, staying informed was simply part of daily life. I remember watching NewsWatch with Harry Gasser and Loren Legarda, then later tuning in to Noli de Castro’s Magandang Gabi Bayan with the family. The…
Exploring the Fascinating World of Time Travel
“Old age is time travel in its truest form—arriving with a treasure chest of memories our younger selves spent a lifetime creating.” Part of my curiosity about life comes from looking in both directions on the timeline. I wonder what the world really looked like before I was born — beyond the sepia photos and…
A Day in the Life of a High School Senior at Holy Cross of Mintal
The sun was already bright when we turned into the road leading to Holy Cross of Mintal. Being a high school senior felt like standing at the edge of a cliff and a playground at the same time. I walked with the usual crew, Rodel Garsuta, Dante Plete, and John Elmer Capricho, trading small talk…
How Philippine TV Turned Me From a Casual Viewer Into a Detached Critic
When I first moved to Hong Kong, one of the first things me Leo and Onin set up at our flat was a TV. Though Hong Kong TV was 85% rendered in Cantonese, VCDs we scored at Worldwide Centre felt like a piece of the Philippines I could bring with me. After long days at…
The Long Road of a Lay Servant
There are memories that feel like sacraments: the smell of beeswax at the sacristy and incense from a partially burned incense boat or a cassock that fell several inches past my knees and made me feel both too small and chosen. I remember the first time I walked up the aisle at Immaculate Conception Parish…
Lessons of Fidelity in Mission from Tita Dolly and Tito Tony
To serve in lay ministry is to learn that the spiritual life is built from small, repeated acts of fidelity. It is found in the quiet lighting of a candle, the humble proclamation of Scripture, and the ordinary chores of maintaining a parish. Yet, any long journey of service eventually encounters organizational conflict and personal…
Why We Long for the Good Old Days
There are days when I hear an old song and I am transported in time — no longer as an adult worrying about bills, deadlines, and responsibilities. I am a child again back in the Philippines during the 80s, sitting by the window waiting for my father to arrive from work, counting the nummber of…